Has the right to abort a child determined to be disabled from prenatal testing morphed into the duty to abort any child with visible disabilities? Former Washington Post bureau chief Patricia Bauer told her personal story with her Down syndrome daughter Margaret, and the hostility she has encountered for carrying her daughter to term. She’s calm but unremitting in criticizing the oft-encountered view that her daughter is “less than human” and “a drain on society” – not unlike attitudes that locked up disabled adults as beyond help or autonomy until nearly mid-century. I analyze this continuing attitude of many conflicted pro-choicers, to deplore the reason for abortion without re-thinking their unwavering support for the right to abort, as long as external factors suffice. Conclusion: It’s a twist on recent developments in punishing intent, as in hate-crimes legislation.
I’m a tech journalist who’s making a TV show about a college newspaper.